Cap Off Your Week With The Latest Mushroom News

Cap Off Your Week With The Latest Mushroom News

Keep up on your mushroom news and you'll be the most fungi at the party.

Mushrooms don’t get nearly enough attention for how sustainable, healthy and user-friendly they are. Edible fungi made headlines a few times this week, and we news-foragers gathered them all up into one delicious media bushel. Get ready for the week in mushroom news.

Mushroom Burgers Hit The Fast Food Market

Enduring fast food behemoth Sonic has breathed new life into the idea of a mushroom burger, thanks to the American Mushroom Council and pioneering chefs like NYC sultan of sustainability and former Top Chef contestant Jehangir Mehta. Their new patties, called Signature Slinger blends, contain 35% mushroom for a burger that is more nutritious and sustainable.

Enoki Mushrooms Get Their Due

Bon Appetit calls them “the easiest mushrooms to love.” We wholeheartedly agree. Inexpensive, healthy and just flavorful enough to not overwhelm the whole dish, these bunches of long, thin white mushrooms have a texture unlike their larger brethren. They’re getting attention in restaurants all over the country — try them in soup!

(Photo: Max Watman/Daily Beast)

Virginia Is For Mushroom Lovers

Virginia is home to a rainbow of delicious wild mushrooms, and local mushroom hunters are establishing a network to get these multi-hued gems to fine dining tables all over the state. Meet the region’s premiere mycologist and fan the flames of your foraging desire — spring mushroom season is well on its way.

Cleveland May Be Home To Country’s First Mushroom Building

The “endless” nature of mushroom mycelium growth has been harnessed and utilized to make everything from natural lamps to experimental couture. Flexible, sustainable and easy to grow, this technique shows promise in markets across the board. Cleveland architect Chris Maurer did humanitarian work in Africa, where he learned the art of mycelium expansion as a building material, and is looking to apply these skills to recycling homes slated for demolition.

Colorado Considers Decriminalizing “Magic Mushrooms”

And we all know what eventually happens when Colorado decriminalizes something fun: everyone wins! Psilocybin, the active compound in hallucinogenic mushrooms currently classified alongside marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug, has been found to have significant-enough-to-report health benefits. The substance can be useful for people with drug-resistant depression, migraine headaches, military veterans with PTSD and even addiction. A group of activists are currently lobbying for reduced penalties for possession. Should they prove successful, the state’s in for one crazy trip.